What do you do with the leftover crumbs at the bottom of the chip packet? How do you juice your lemons?
Some of our favourite chefs, food bloggers, recipe writers and food editors have let us in on their secret food hacks. And some are very unexpected…
The easiest way to mince garlic
Elle Vernon, Food Editor at Better Homes and Gardens magazine
"If you don't have a microplane, you need to buy one (I'm not paid to say that). It’s the best tool for 'mincing' or 'crushing' garlic. It's quick to do, you get a consistent result, plus it's easy to clean. I use mine EVERY DAY! It's also amazing for grating chocolate, ginger, fresh turmeric, parmesan and citrus zest."
Get more juice from citrus fruit
Janelle Bloom, TV cook & presenter, author, food stylist, recipe writer
"I microwave lemons, limes and oranges for 30 seconds on high/100% before I juice them. You get double the juice!"
Freeze leftover fruit
Alison Roberts, Food Editor at Diabetic Living magazine
"My favourite kitchen tip is to freeze leftover fruit just before it gets too soft. I then pull them out to use in smoothies or sauces. I often bag up strawberries (just hull them and leave whole), chopped up pineapple, watermelon, rockmelon, berries and bananas. You can even make up packs with a combination of fruit. Simply throw a bag into a blender with some ice-cubes, coconut water and a chopped orange, then blitz. A great refreshing fruity snack. Plus, blending the fruits whole means you are keeping in all the fibre you often lose when juicing fruits."
Keep time with your microwave
Beth Macdonald, Blogger at BabyMac
"The timer on the microwave. Who knew?! Not me, but since I discovered it I use it ALL the time."
Avoid onion tears
Jody Allen, Author and Blogger at Stay at Home Mum
"My best kitchen hack is to cut up all my onions at the one time (I use my food processor – it has a setting for cutting them nicely, not pureeing them) and freeze them in single portions. This hack saves so much time and means that there is no 'crying' over them."
Keep butter baking-ready
Lauren Matheson, Blogger at Create Bake Make
"I always have a block of butter sitting on the kitchen bench so it's soft and ready to bake with."
Use your chip crumbs for seasoning
Barbara Northwood , Food Director at New Idea magazine
"Don’t throw away crumbs in the bottom of potato or corn chip packets or savoury biscuit boxes (I also include any broken biscuits). Keep them in a sealed jar and combine with grated cheese, and use as a crunchy topping for steamed vegetables, grilled tomatoes or macaroni cheese. Alternatively, add a little of your favourite seasoning, such as Mexican or Tuscan, and combine with dried breadcrumbs to use as a coating for chicken or veal schnitzel or whenever you add breadcrumbs to burgers, rissoles and meatloaves."
What are your favourite kitchen hacks? Let us know in the comments.
